Bees

Ever wonder how bees make art?! I know they have the important job of pollinating flowers in my garden, which creates berries for the birds, makes honey for healthier foods, entertains my dog, can cause me pain when I get stung, BUT they can make art too? Whhhaaaatttt?!!!

Bees create wax in their little hives which in turns gets melted down by humans & a tree hardener called damar resin is added to create an ‘encaustic medium’. Once melted, this becomes a beautiful base for encaustic art, with or without pigments, and it even smells yummy!

Encaustic painting goes way back in history to Egypt around 100-300 A.D. and wax is an excellent preserver of materials. While I will not be doing mummy portraits anytime soon, I will be having fun experimenting with this unique medium that allows me to add vintage laces, fabrics, photos, found objects and botanical elements to my artwork.

So it looks like those little bees that we often think of as being an annoyance are actually important to humans, the planet, food supplies….and even the art world!

From my (bee) heart to yours,